Ranking the 5 Most Underrated Mets Prospects Heading into 2015

Over the past few years, the New York Mets have done a very good job developing a great minor league farm system to build upon for the future. Quite a few current Mets have come up through this system under current general manger Sandy Alderson, including Matt Harvey, Zack Wheeler, Jacob deGrom, Jeurys Familia, Jenrry Mejia, Lucas Duda, Wilmer Flores, Juan Lagares and Travis d'Arnaud.

However, there are more young and talented prospects that could be coming up soon—some as soon as the 2015 season.

But not all of the Mets' prospects right now are well-known names. The bigger names include Noah Syndergaard, Brandon Nimmo, Rafael Montero and Dilson Herrera, but there are a few others that are more underrated and deserve to be recognized just as much.

Here are the top five most underrated Mets prospects right now.

5. SP Gabriel Ynoa

2014 Statistics: 11-4, 4.07 ERA, 25 GS, 148.1 IP, 106 K, 1.31 WHIP

Gabriel Ynoa begins the list at No. 5. He is one of the better pitchers in the Mets organization and is coming off a solid 2014 season that included 11 wins in 25 starts split between Single-A St. Lucie and Double-A Binghamton.

Ynoa's numbers were not as impressive as they were in 2013 when he won 15 games and posted a 2.72 ERA in Single-A Savannah. Regardless, Ynoa has a lot of potential and should become a bigger name among Mets prospects once Syndergaard and Montero, among others, are in the major leagues for good.

4. C Kevin Plawecki

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2014 Season Statistics: .309/.365/.460, 24 2B, 11 HR, 64 RBI, 30 BB, 58 R

Kevin Plawecki is one of the Mets' more established offensive prospects, but he is currently under the shadow of young starting catcher Travis d'Arnaud. The 25-year-old's rookie season was in 2014, and he could very well be considered the Mets' catcher of the future.

If that is the case, it may be tough for Plawecki to eventually find a way into the Mets' lineup. He could become a future backup to d'Arnaud, but because he should command good enough value on the trade market, the Mets could use him as a trade chip if certain trade possibilities arise.

Again, Plawecki has developed into one of the better catching prospects in all of baseball, but because of the attention d'Arnaud has gotten with the Mets, it can be easy to overlook him. He should eventually become a good starting catcher in the major leagues, whether it be with the Mets or another team.

3. 3B Jhoan Urena

2014 Season Statistics: .300/.356/.431, 20 2B, 5 HR, 47 RBI, 27 BB, 30 R

One Mets hitting prospect that is certainly under the radar is third baseman Jhoan Urena. He hit well last year in Single-A Brooklyn and should do even better over a full season in either Single-A Savannah or Single-A St. Lucie.

Urena showed last year that he can be a .300 hitter, and there is a chance his power could develop more in the future. If that happens, look for him to rise through the Mets' system over the next few years.

2. SP Steven Matz

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2014 Season Statistics: 10-9, 2.24 ERA, 24 GS, 140.2 IP, 131 K, 1.19 WHIP

Steven Matz is not exactly a unknown Mets prospect; however, in recent years, with the emergence of Harvey, Wheeler and deGrom in the major leagues, plus the presence of Syndergaard in the minors, Matz was pushed back in the Mets' pitching prospect depth chart simply because of the amazing depth the organization has.

But now that Harvey, Wheeler and deGrom are in the majors (plus Syndergaard likely to get called up this season), Matz should be back to being one of the bigger names among Mets pitching prospects. He split 2014 with Single-A St. Lucie and Double-A Binghamton and posted ERAs below 2.30 in both levels.

With a full year of Double-A ball ahead of him (and possibly time in Triple-A Las Vegas as well), Matz should be able to continue his recent success as he works toward making the major leagues. This could happen as soon as 2016, depending on how everything works out this year.

1. SP Marcos Molina

2014 Season Statistics: 7-3, 1.77 ERA, 12 GS, 76.1 IP, 91 K, 0.84 WHIP

Despite the hype about Syndergaard and the rejuvenation of Matz to climb up the Mets' pitching prospect ranks, the real pitching jewel in the Mets' minor league system could very well be Marcos Molina.

Molina is coming off a stellar 2014 season in Single-A Brooklyn. His 1.77 ERA and 0.84 WHIP were spectacular, and he averaged nearly 1.2 strikeouts per inning. Sure, the 12 starts in a short-seasoned league are a relatively small sample, but over a full season in Single-A Savannah or Single-A St. Lucie, Molina could show that he can be consistent on the mound against more developed hitters.

If there is any Mets prospect to watch this season, it's Molina. He could have ace potential if he continues to put up similar numbers in the higher levels.

All statistics shown are courtesy of MiLB.com.